The present invention relates generally to a bandwidth smoothing scheme for streaming video to a streaming client. More particularly, the present invention relates to apparatus, and an associated method, by which to facilitate the communication of streaming video to a mobile station in a radio communication system. An indication of the buffer size of a buffer at the mobile station at which the streaming video is buffered is utilized in bandwidth smoothing operations. Changes in bandwidth allocations pursuant to the bandwidth smoothing operations are made, as necessary, if the time required to renegotiate the changes in the bandwidth allocations in the radio communication are less than the time during which the bandwidth allocation is to be changed.
Advancements in communication technologies have permitted the introduction of, and popularization of, new types of, and improvements in existing, communication systems. Increasingly large amounts of data are permitted to be communicated at increasingly-high throughput rates through the use of such new, or improved, communication systems. As a result of such improvements, new types of communications, requiring high data throughput rates, are possible. Digital communication techniques, for instance, are increasingly utilized in communication systems to efficiently communicate digital data, and the use of such techniques has facilitated the increased data throughput rates.
Multimedia communications, for instance, are exemplary of new types of communications permitted as a result of the improvements in communication technologies. Multimedia communications refer, generally, to the communication of more than one type of data between a sending station and a receiving station. Typically, the communication of such more than one type of data appears, to a user, to be simultaneous. Multimedia communications include, for instance, voice-over-IP (Internet protocol) applications. Audio signals overlayed upon video signals used to effectuate teleconferencing is an example of a multimedia communication application. Two-way whiteboard communication is exemplary of another multimedia communication application. Various of such multimedia communications utilize streaming multimedia, such as streaming video.
Streaming video or other multimedia data is generated by a streaming proxy and is provided to a streaming client. Streaming multimedia is provided by way of, for example, the Internet. In such an application, the streaming proxy is formed, for instance, of a computer server connected to the Internet, and the streaming client is formed of, for example, a personal computer, or the like. In a streaming video application, downloading, decoding, and playing of the data is performed simultaneously. That is to say, as the streaming video is downloaded, streaming video previously downloaded is decoded, and streaming video previously downloaded and decoded, is played, in an on-line basis.
When the streaming client is formed of a personal computer, or the like, the storage capacity of the streaming client is generally large and is usually not a limiting factor in effectuation of communication of the streaming video. Storage capacity is required at the streaming client to buffer data as the data is received from the streaming proxy.
Additional advancements in communication technologies have permitted the introduction, and widespread usage, of radio communication systems, such as cellular communication systems. A mobile station operable in a cellular, or other, radio, communication system is capable of transceiving data with network infrastructure of the radio communication system by way of a radio link. Existing radio communication systems permit the communication of both and voice and non-voice data.
Proposals have been set forth to provide for multimedia communication, including the communication of streaming multimedia data, to a mobile station. Generally, however, in both wireline and non-wireline applications, the bandwidth, i.e., the bit rate, required to transmit the streaming video is variable. Such variation in the required bandwidth results from compression of the data prior to its transmission. In a radio communication system, such as a cellular communication system, radio resource management is required to allocate the appropriate amount of bandwidth to insure the successful communication of the streaming video. Schemes have been set forth for wireline communication systems by which to deal with the variability of the bandwidth requirements. Caching schemes, sometimes also referred to as buffering or pre-fetching schemes, and bandwidth smoothing schemes are exemplary of such schemes. However, existing implementations of such schemes are generally too inflexible for application to cellular, or other radio, communication systems.
While, and as noted above, the streaming client in a typical wireline implementation includes a fairly large storage capacity at which streaming video can be buffered, when a mobile station forms the streaming client, the memory capacity of the client cannot be assumed to be of the fairly large storage capacity. If the storage capacity of the mobile station is small, the bandwidth of the streaming video must be appropriately altered to insure that buffer overflow does not interfere with communication of the streaming video. Also, because radio resources are limited in a radio communication system, efficient allocation of the radio resources is required to permit efficient operation of the radio communication system. Existing schemes which deal with bandwidth variability of communication of streaming video do not generally take into account the unique need to manage radio resources required in a radio communication system.
If a manner could be provided by which better to facilitate communication of streaming video in a radio communication system, improved communication of streaming video in a radio communication system, would be permitted.
It is in light of this background information related to the communication of streaming video that the improvements of the present invention have evolved.
The present invention, accordingly, advantageously provides apparatus, and an associated method, for facilitating the communication of streaming video in a radio communication system to a streaming client, such as a mobile station operable in a cellular communication system.
During operation of an embodiment of the present invention, bandwidth smoothing is performed to facilitate the communication of the streaming video or another multimedia data component to the mobile station. Determination of a bandwidth plan to allocate the bandwidth for the communication of the streaming video to the mobile station is dynamically determined in manners to take into account characteristics of the mobile station.
In one aspect of the present invention, the mobile station includes a buffer at which streaming video is buffered during performance of a communication service in which streaming video is provided to the mobile station. The buffer size of the buffer available for buffering of the streaming video is determined, and an indication of such buffer size is utilized in bandwidth smoothing operations. That is to say, allocations of bandwidth for which to effectuate the communication of the streaming video is dependent, in part, upon the size of the buffer available at the mobile station to buffer the streaming video. The characteristics of the streaming video, such as the number of accumulated bits per frame of the streaming video as a function of a frame number of the streaming video, is also utilized in the allocation of bandwidth to effectuate the communication of the streaming video.
In another aspect of the present, a determination is made at the mobile station of the size of the buffer available to buffer the streaming video to be provided thereto pursuant to a communication service. The buffer size is, for instance, a set size of a memory element dedicated to buffer the streaming video. Or, the buffer size is selectably allocable. That is to say, a portion of a memory element of the mobile station is available for use as a buffer to buffer the steaming data provided to the mobile station pursuant to the performance of a communication service. The portion of the memory element allocable to form a buffer to buffer the streaming video is alterable, dependent, for instance, upon the need to allocate portions of the memory element for other operations. In an implementation in which the buffer size is a set value, determination of the buffer size necessitates merely retrieval of a value representative of the buffer size. When the buffer is selectable, the determination of the buffer size necessitates dynamic inquiry of the selected buffer size, such as prior to initiation of the performance of the communication service.
In another aspect of the present invention, subsequent to determination of the buffer size of the buffer available to buffer the streaming video, a buffer-size indication message is generated at the mobile station for communication over a radio link to network infrastructure with which the mobile station is operable, thereby to identify to the network infrastructure the buffer size of the buffer available at the mobile station to buffer the streaming video. Such indication is utilized in the allocation of the bandwidth to the communication service to effectuate the communication of the streaming video. In one implementation, the buffer-size indication message forms a portion of a request for the performance of a communication service which includes the downloading thereto of streaming video.
In one implementation, the mobile station includes a buffer-size indication message generator coupled to receive indications of determinations of the buffer size available at the mobile station to buffer the streaming video. The buffer-size indication message generator is further coupled to a transmit portion of the mobile station. The bandwidth-size indication message generator is operable to generate a buffer-size indication message of a value indicative of the buffer size of the buffer available at the mobile station to buffer the steaming data. The transmit portion of the mobile station converts the signal into a form to permit its communication upon a radio link to the network infrastructure. In an implementation in which the buffer-size indication message forms a portion of the request for the performance of a communication service, the buffer-size indication message is formatted by a formatter into such a request.
In another implementation, the network infrastructure includes a bandwidth smoothing scheme selector. The bandwidth smoothing scheme selector is coupled to receive indications of the buffer-size indication message. In the exemplary implementation, the bandwidth smoothing scheme selector is further coupled to receive indicia of the streaming video, such as the number of accumulated bits per frame. Responsive to such information, the bandwidth smoothing scheme selector selects the allocation of bandwidth for the communication of the streaming video. Such selection takes into account the required bandwidth to effectuate the communication of the streaming video as well as the size of the buffer located at the mobile station available to buffer the streaming video when received thereat.
In a further implementation, when alteration in the bandwidth allocated to effectuate the communication of the streaming video pursuant to a communication service necessitates reallocation of radio resources, a radio resource manager is informed of the need to increase, or decrease, the allocation of the bandwidth over the radio link, thereby to permit such reallocation to be effectuated. In one implementation, the bandwidth smoothing scheme selector forms a portion of a streaming proxy at which the streaming video originates. In another implementation, the bandwidth smoothing scheme selector forms a portion of the base station system (BSS) of the network infrastructure.
In an exemplary implementation, an embodiment of the present invention is operable in a cellular communication system, such as a CDMA (code-division, multiple-access)-based or a TDMA (time-division, multiple access)-based system. The mobile station operable in such a cellular communication system is of any of various types of construction and includes radio transceiver circuitry operable to transceive communication signals generated upon a radio link defined in the cellular communication system. The mobile station, for instance, is comprised of a conventional mobile terminal having a relatively small buffer allocated to buffer streaming video. The mobile station can alternately be formed of a Nokia-communicator (TM)-type mobile station. And, the mobile station can also be formed of a mobile terminal coupled to a personal computer, or the like. The various types of mobile stations each exhibit different buffers of different buffer sizes. Through operation of an embodiment of the present invention, indications of the buffer size are determined and utilized to form a buffer-size indication message. The message is communicated to a bandwidth smoothing scheme selector, located at the network infrastructure of the cellular communication system. In one implementation, the bandwidth smoothing scheme selector forms a portion of the base station system of the network infrastructure. In another implementation, the bandwidth smoothing scheme selector forms a portion of a streaming proxy at which the streaming video is originated. Bandwidth allocations for the communication of the streaming video are selected responsive, in part, to the buffer size indicated in the buffer-size indication message.
In these and other aspects, therefore, apparatus, and an associated method, is provided for a mobile station operable in a radio communication system at least to receive a streaming multimedia data component by way of a radio link. The streaming multimedia data component is generated by a streaming multimedia data component source. The apparatus, and associated method, facilitates bandwidth smoothing allocations of bandwidth to communicate the streaming multimedia data component upon the radio link. A buffer of a selected buffer size is located at the mobile station. The buffer buffers the streaming video when received at the mobile station. A buffer-size message generator is coupled to receive indications of the selected buffer size of the buffer. The buffer-size message generator generates a buffer-size indication message for transmission upon the radio link. The buffer-size indication message indicates the selected buffer size of the buffer.
Further, in these and other aspects, apparatus and an associated method is provided for the network infrastructure of the radio communication system. The radio communication system includes both the network infrastructure and a mobile station at least operable to receive a streaming multimedia data component by way of a radio link formable therebetween. The streaming multimedia data component is generated by a streaming multimedia data component source. The apparatus, and associated method, facilitates bandwidth smoothing allocations of bandwidth to communicate the streaming multimedia data component upon the radio link. A bandwidth smoothing scheme selector is coupled to receive indications of the selected buffer size indicated by the buffer-size indication message generated by the buffer-size message generator. The bandwidth smoothing scheme selector selects the allocation of bandwidth for communication upon the radio link of the streaming multimedia data component responsive to values of the indications of the selected buffer size.
The present invention and the scope thereof can be obtained from the accompanying drawings which are briefly summarized below, the following detailed description of the presently-preferred embodiments of the invention, and the appended claims.